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Superman: Doomsday
| producer = Bruce Timm | screenplay = Duane Capizzi | story = | based on = Joe Shuster}} | narrator = James Marsters | starring = | music = Robert Kral | studio = | distributor = Warner Home Video | released = | runtime = 77 minutes | language = English | budget = | gross = | country = United States }} Superman: Doomsday is a 2007 American animated superhero film, adapted from the DC Comics storyline "The Death of Superman" which focuses on the death and return of the superhero Superman. Released by Warner Bros. Animation, it is the first film in the DC Universe Animated Original Movies. It was followed by Justice League: The New Frontier. Plot Lois Lane and Superman are romantically involved, but Lois is not happy with keeping their relationship secret. While digging, workers from LexCorp unearth the spaceship of Doomsday, a genetically-engineered super-soldier highly hostile toward anything that moves. It kills the digging crew and begins a bloody rampage towards Metropolis. Superman and Doomsday engage in a battle until Superman kills Doomsday and apparently succumbs to his own injuries. Lex Luthor kills his personal assistant to ensure no one else knows of LexCorp's involvement. The world mourns Superman and Metropolis honors him with a memorial. Superman's friends cope with his death in various ways. Jimmy Olsen takes a job at tabloid newspaper The National Voyeur, Perry White becomes an alcoholic, and Lois, having realized that Clark was Superman, visits Martha Kent for counsel. In Superman's absence, Metropolis is overwhelmed by criminals. Toyman uses a giant mechanical spider to hold children hostage. Lois decides to save them herself, but Toyman tries to kill her and a little girl. Superman digs out of his grave and saves Lois, apprehending Toyman. He doesn't seem quite the same, but Lois dismisses it as shock. She becomes suspicious, however, when Martha tells her that Clark has not called home. The resurrected Superman is revealed to be a clone created by Lex who is keeping the real Superman's body preserved in a tube, unaware that Superman is, barely, still alive. He periodically tortures the clone Superman in a special lead-lined room. A robot from the Fortress of Solitude detects that Superman is still alive, recovers his body, and begins restoring him to health. Meanwhile, the clone's attitude darkens when he hears that Toyman killed a child. In retaliation, Superman drops him from a height so that he falls to his death in front of the police station. The city is stunned and the clone threatens the populace into abiding by the law. This convinces Lois and Martha that this is not the real Superman. Lex berates the clone, orders him to find Superman's corpse, and threatens to kill him if he misbehaves again. The clone deduces that a lead-shielded kryptonite pellet is in his brain, and removes it. Lois tranquilizes Lex and searches his files with Jimmy, discovering that Lex is cloning an army of Supermen. Lex awakens armed with a gun, but the original clone saves Lois and Jimmy and destroys the cloning facility and the yet-to-be-awakened clones. Lex hides in the special room but the clone locks him inside and tosses the entire room to the street. This latest presumed murder triggers military action which fails. Superman is revived and resolves to confront the clone, although his powers are not fully restored. To improve his odds he dons a "solar suit" and brings a Kryptonite gun. The two battle and Lois manages to hit the clone with a kryptonite blast. The clone destroys the gun, but the Kryptonite canister sticks to the clone's chest and Superman vaporizes it with heat vision. Before dying, the clone tells Superman to protect the people. Lois is sure of the real Superman once he kisses her, and the crowd is similarly happy now that they know that the real Superman is alive. At Lois' apartment Superman reveals himself to be Clark Kent. Lois embraces Superman with elation. At LexCorp, Lex is revealed to be critically injured and in a wheelchair, but still alive. He smiles, musing that there may still be a way for him to destroy Superman. Voice cast * Adam Baldwin as Superman * Anne Heche as Lois Lane * James Marsters as Lex Luthor * John DiMaggio as Toyman * Tom Kenny as The Robot * Swoosie Kurtz as Martha Kent * Cree Summer as Mercy Graves * Ray Wise as Perry White * Adam Wylie as Jimmy Olsen * Kevin Smith as Grumpy Man * Kimberly Brooks as Murphy * Townsend Coleman as Drill Operator * Chris Cox as Damon Swank * Hettie Lynn Hurtes as Newscaster * James Arnold Taylor as Officer Tucker Production Despite similar animation styles, the film used new animation models, and is only loosely based on the DC Animated Universe that lasted from 1992-2006, with a few allusions to the older series, as well as the Fleischer Superman series, found in the Fortress of Solitude. Differences with the comics Superman's black suit, and longer hair when he came back to fight the doppelgänger Superman is one of the few things to match up with the Doomsday storyline from the comics. Most other aspects, including the origins and appearance of Doomsday, the relationship of Superman and Lois Lane, the fight itself, and the events surrounding Superman's return, were far different than their comic counterparts. In addition, all references to other characters throughout the arc, including the Justice League (who battled Doomsday in an attempt to stop him from reaching Metropolis) many supporting characters, and the four false Supermen (Superboy, the Eradicator, Cyborg Superman, and Steel, though unlike the previous three Steel was inspired by him and never claimed to be Superman) were left out entirely. Aspects of these characters were combined to form the clone Superman (Superboy was a clone, the Eradicator killed criminals, and Cyborg Superman was a villain who pretended to be the real Superman). Also, while starting up the helicopter on the Daily Planet roof, Lois tells Jimmy that she was an "air force brat" (while in the comics her father, General Sam Lane, was in the army). Martha Kent is depicted as a widow in the film, whereas in the comics, Jonathan Kent is alive and would possibly play a key part in bringing Superman back from the afterlife. Elements from other Superman media In the Fortress of Solitude various items can be seen from past Superman cartoons. Some of these include Superman's anti-Kryptonite suit, as well as his space suit and rocket from Superman: The Animated Series. Others are from the Fleischer Superman cartoons of the 40's including the Bullet Car from The Bulleteers and one of the robots from The Mechanical Monsters. The Bottle City of Kandor can be seen as well. The character Mercy Graves originally appeared in Superman: The Animated Series as Luthor's chauffeur and bodyguard. In this film, she is his corporate assistant. James Marsters, who voiced Lex Luthor in the movie, played the character of Brainiac/Milton Fine in the TV show Smallville (Season 5 Episodes: "Arrival", "Aqua", "Thirst", "Splinter", "Solitude", "Hypnotic", "Oracle", "Vessel"). Kevin Smith cameo Writer/director Kevin Smith made a brief cameo in the film, during the scene in which Superman apprehends Toyman. As Superman carries Toyman off, a man (modeled after and voiced by Smith) remarks, "Like we really needed him to bust up a mechanical spider, right? Lame!"McLaughlin, Robert (July 17, 2009). "How Superman became Will Smith’s adversary". Den of Geek! This is a reference to the Warner Bros. Superman project that he and director-producer Jon Peters collaborated on, which never came to fruition. According to Smith, Peters wanted Superman to fight a giant spider in the film's third act.Cecchini, Mike (August 2, 2017). "Was Ahead of Its Time: Kevin Smith's Superman Lives script would feel right at home with modern superhero blockbusters and TV shows." Den of Geek!Collis, Clark (July 1, 2015). "The Death of Superman Lives: What Happened? -- exclusive clip". Entertainment Weekly.Elliott, Josh (June 12, 2013). "How producer Jon Peters and a giant spider nearly ruined Superman". The Pop Cultist. Smith revealed in his interview film An Evening with Kevin Smith that he incorporated this and Peters' other ideas into his script,Conrad, Jeremy (January 9, 2003). "An Evening with Kevin Smith: Nearly four hours of stories from The Man. Our full review. ". IGN. but that script was never used, as director Tim Burton was eventually brought onto the project, and wished to employ a screenwriter of his own preference. A giant spider eventually was used in the climax of the 1999 film Wild, Wild West, which Peters produced. Release The film was released on September 18, 2007. Before the DVD release, the movie was first screened at the San Diego Comic-Con on July 26, 2007. It made its U.S. broadcast premier on the Cartoon Network on Saturday July 12, 2008. Superman: Doomsday was exclusively available on DVD with a collectible packaging depicting Superman bursting through the movie's logo. It was the only film in the series originally released without a special edition. Following a year later was a two-disc special edition DVD release. The special features included a retrospective look at how the Death of Superman comic came to be, a look at voice actors, as well as a Defeat Doomsday game with a 10-minute preview to the next animated film; Justice League: The New Frontier. Release of a Blu-ray version was announced with a release date of February 26, 2008, but was delayed. Warner Home Video released a new "Special Edition" Blu-ray and DVD, featuring new bonus materials on November 25, 2008. Rating The film's generous amount of violence and adult language garnered a PG-13 rating from the MPAA. This is the first time an animated Superman project has ever received such a strong rating. Most of the more visceral deaths take place off-camera, however the fight sequences are very intense. During the Doomsday/Superman fight, Superman coughs a puddle of blood onto the ground, perhaps the most visual use of blood in the entire film. Soundtrack The soundtrack to Superman: Doomsday was released on October 26, 2007. The music was composed by Robert J. Kral. The soundtrack listing: Reception Critical reaction The film received favorable reviews from critics. Following the screening at Comic-Con, and its release on DVD, the movie garnered mostly positive reviews, with some reviewers commenting it was a marked improvement compared to other recent DC animated adaptations; some commented it raised the bar for the follow-up to the live-action Superman Returns which had been released the previous summer. Many also agreed it was also better in comparison to the recent animated films Marvel Studios had released based on their characters (such as Ultimate Avengers), in part due to the more adult and action-packed story in keeping with its PG-13 rating. Many reviews spoke highly of James Marsters' and Adam Baldwin's voice acting as Lex Luthor and Superman, while reviews of Anne Heche's portrayal of Lois Lane were mixed. Not all reviews of the film were positive. DVDTalk.com, while praising the film's look and its technical presentation, called the film "a massive disappointment" and also negatively commented on the film's short running time and its lack of adherence to the storyline of The Death of Superman comics. James Deaux of Earth-2.net gave the movie a score of 5.5 out of 10, claiming the movie was far too overhyped and the result was not a bad, but a mediocre product with "many instances of...lazy writing, confusing animation, a couple of glaring plot holes and some mediocre voice acting." He also criticized the title of the movie given that Doomsday has such a minimal role in the film. Sales The Top 100 DVD sales chart for September 18 - 23, 2017 revealed that the film was placed at #4, and was two spots ahead of the season six release of Smallville, a Superman related television show. Variety made a report three months after the DVD's release, on DTV movies becoming very popular, and revealed that the DVD sold 600,000 copies, 30% more than what the studio predicted. At the present time, Superman Doomsday is the highest selling film from the DC direct-to-video series selling more than 680,000 units. References External links * *[http://www.worldsfinestonline.com/WF/dcuam/doomsday/ Superman: Doomsday @ The World's Finest] * Category:2007 animated films Category:Animated Superman films Category:DC Universe Animated Original Movies Category:2007 direct-to-video films Category:2000s American animated films Category:2000s animated superhero films Category:American films Category:Films directed by Lauren Montgomery Category:Films directed by Bruce Timm Category:Films directed by Brandon Vietti Category:Warner Bros. Animation animated films Category:Warner Bros. direct-to-video films Category:Animated superhero films Category:Animated science fiction films Category:American science fiction films Category:Films about extraterrestrial life Category:Resurrection in film Category:Films about identity theft